Of all times
by Lady Vyxen
Summary: Why is Mrs. Norris so fond of Filch? Why does he hold a special place in her little heart? It is so easy to forget that a little creature like a cat can feel and experience everything from a totally different point of view.
1. In Wet Grass

Disclaimer:I do not own Mrs. Norris, or anything recognizable from Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling does.

* * *

**In Wet Grass **

It was early morning when she crawled in the wet grass. She straightened her ears; trained to track the tiniest of noises made when a mouse was trying to sneak past her.

She could hear it now. She was not the young feline she used to be, but her hearing was sharp and so was her sense of smell. When she sniffed the cold morning air, she could recognize a sea of smells – soggy ground, wet grass, walls of old buildings, traces of countless feet that had crossed the very place she laid.

The mouse was close. One jump and Mrs. Norris would be satisfied with a fresh breakfast. Not that she must, a Big One, her Big One, would provide her with a tasty meal whether she caught something or not. These were good times.

But it wasn't always like this.

There was a time when she was a happy mother, but this would not last. The small cellar she was in ceased to be a shelter – it became her trap. As she was laying with her eight peacefully sleeping kittens she smelt a strong scent. This smell promised a painful death. She caught a nearby kitten and jumped through a window. She came back for the next, but there were too many of them, and so little time to move them all.

As the red glowing monster ate the building and her remaining children, she cried for them to get out. She cried with all her desperation, but they couldn't reach the window and she was too afraid to go back in.

She took the two survivors, a girl and a boy, and looked around trying to find a new shelter and something to eat. The loss hurt her as much as her belly, where she spotted a dirty, bold spot where milky-white fur used to be. It hurt her when the little ones nestled their tiny heads there to find a drop of milk.

She found something big and still warm to lie under. It was free of snow and ice, even if there was a small puddle of something black near by. But her shelter roared and moved, leaving her without a roof, without warmth, again.

She took her little ones and searched for another building. She waited patiently while Big Ones walked in and out. When the entrance was clear, she carefully entered inside and curled under something metal and warm. She dozed off, the nightmare she survived replaying in her dreams. A voice woke her.

"Mommy, look! A cat!"

The smaller Big One was pointing his finger at her. She curled protectively around her kittens, not knowing what to expect. Big Ones were bad. Big Ones kicked, threw stones, pulled fur mercilessly. Big Ones would kick her out of peaceful shelters.

"Yes Danny, and a rather dirty one."

The bigger Big One had a calm voice, but she was smart. She would not trust a Big One. Ever.

"Cats have a pointy, sharp teeth. They are wild and _bloodthirsty_. They can cut a throat with their claws."

She moved further under the warm thing. She couldn't understand the smaller Big One, but the tone of his voice was accusing, threatening, almost frightening.

"No, Danny. You watch too much TV. I'll call the "Animal Shelter" and they will take the cat."

"And kill it?"

"No, they will just take it. Cats _stink_, and we don't want the stench, now do we?"

She watched them through half opened lids, her body tense and ready to defend her little ones, but they went away. Some time later another Big Ones appeared.

She tried to fight but they took her and her children. She spent some time in a roaring, smelly thing similar to the one she hide herself under some time ago. They brought her to a place with white walls, where a different Big One dressed in white examined her.

This place smelled of fear, of diseases and pain. She crouched down trying to cover her belly as she hissed and made use of her claws, but the Big One touched her anyway. It put some disgusting substance in her mouth and forced her to swallow it. Then there were needles and itchy liquids smeared on her belly.

She felt numb and tired after all and fell asleep against her will.

First thing was the smell. There were cats, like she, for sure, and her little ones, and food.

Then she opened her eyes. There were so many of them in one room with a large window. Most of them slept on the floor, like her. Some of them were on the windowsill, and two were on a shelf just under the ceiling.

She spotted three more kittens curled near her, bigger and older than her little ones.

"You are awake!" Shouted the biggest one with snow-white fur. Before she spoke to him, he turned his head to the rest of the room.

"Mommy is awake!"

"Why do you call me mommy? You are not my child," she said gently, but firmly.

"Because you're the only mommy one here."

He moved closer and sniffed . "You smell like 'Isolated Room'."

She almost immediately started to lick herself, her rough tongue cleaning the stench from her long fur. She stopped in mid-move and looked at the white kitten.

"Where is your mum?"

He sighed sadly and looked at the moonlight shining through the window glass.

"Dead. And none of us will breed. Big ones will do it to you too. They," he pointed at her two sleeping children "are your last ones."

"Big Ones are bad," she said with confidence.

"Not all of them."

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A/N: This story would never be posted without wonderful job of my beta reader, Cat Paws.

Thanks for reading!


	2. The Carpet

**The Carpet**

She got used to "The Place" eventually and liked it. Even if it was too small and there were too many cats, it was warm and cozy. Even if "The Sand" became dirty so fast, and she couldn't go outside, there was always "The Food", provided by not-so-bad Big Ones.

She made friends here, with Stained, One-Eyed, Clumsy, Shiny, Three-Legged and Spot.

But to all of them she was Mommy. Even if Big Ones took her children not long after her arrival to "The Place", all of Carpet called her Mommy.

The next morning Princess arrived, and destroyed The Food when she dug in The Sand. The Carpet became angry with her. They shouted and threatened her with their claws. She agreed with the Carpet then, but soon it turned out that Princess could not see a thing. Princess was very sorry and explained that she wouldn't cover The Food with The Sand if she knew that The Food was so close.

She felt bad for Princess, who was now sleeping with the rest of Carpet. She would help her tomorrow with The Sand – she was Mommy after all, and Princess just became another one of her children.

It was a hot night and she couldn't sleep. All of Carpet slept soundly except of her. She was lying on her Shelf, her tail dandling nervously. Sometimes she felt like a part of the Carpet, sometimes not.

On a night like this, when the moon was full and the sky so clear she felt different. Excited, nervous, like if something was going to happen.

She looked down. So many cats, sleeping close, one by one, with various shades of fur. They looked like a living, breathing carpet.

On a night like this their clawed, murmuring dreams were joined in one, and floated through the window, seeing other cats: on elegant pillows, in spacious rooms, loved, needed. They ran away from cats in bins, hungry, sick, abandoned. They flew over the roofs, purring a lullaby for a sleeping town.

* * *

Today, Poor arrived. He told his story to the Carpet, and her heart broke.

Big Ones took him when he was a small kitten. They were nice at the beginning. They provided him with food, toys, and played with him. But he grew fast and soon become a large cat; too large for their liking.

They took him in the roaring thing and threw him somewhere in the forest. He couldn't go back, so he wandered, looking for something to eat.

When he spotted a group of smaller Big Ones, he thought there was hope , but he was wrong.

They pierced his tail and tied a can to it. When he stopped chasing his own tail, he stopped being funny, so they threw stones at him, kicked him and dropped him into the lake.

Beaten, half starved, wet and half alive he wandered into a city, without any idea what to do. Once he fell asleep on stairs and he woke up in The Place.

His tail was missing along with his teeth and a certain part that was responsible for creating kittens. He wasn't in pain, however, and his belly was full and Big Ones were stroking his fur instead of pulling it.

She was lying on her Shelf when White, her first adopted child, poked her with his nose.

"Mommy, why are they doing this to us? Why are they so cruel?"

She lifted her head and looked at White.

"I don't know, Sweetie. I wish I knew, but I don't."

"It's good we are safe in The Place. Even if it's too crowded for my liking."

She sighed and shook her head. "Don't complain. We are lucky being here."

* * *

A/N: Thanks to my beta, Cat Paws for wonderful job!

Reviews appreciated :)


	3. The Departure

The Departure

Life in The Place was full of surprises. After a week went by, a bunch of newborn kittens arrived. She of course took care of them, played with them and taught them as much as she could. Another week later an old, wrinkled Big One came with a basket and took all five.

On days like this all of Carpet was full of nervous anticipation. The Carpet called it "New Hope – Days" and they licked themselves all morning to be presentable. When Big Ones were coming, Carpet made purring noises, brushing against Big Ones' legs, whispering "Take me, _take me_!"

She couldn't understand them then, curled on her Shelf and doing everything to NOT be noticed. She would never admit it to the Carpet, but she was scared that they might choose her and take her away from The Place.

* * *

This day wasn't any different for her, but the sinking feeling in her stomach was almost unbearable. The intensity of it grew when a small Big One pointed its sticky finger at her.

"Uncle Mike, this one looks like the Persian cat my neighbors have. They paid a lot of moneys for it."

The other Big One looked at her and furrowed his bushy eyebrows.

"_Money_. Yeah, sort of does," he said, trying to reach her with his large hand.

She hissed and moved as far from him as her Shelf allowed. The smaller Big One seemed oblivious to her anger because he spoke once again, this time in a pleading tone.

"Let's take him, pleeease. People will think that we have a lots of moneys too."

"_Money_, kid. But yeah, maybe. He seems to have a nasty temper, though," The uncertainty in his voice almost calmed her.

"I'll love him anyway. He's so pretty. Pleeeease."

They left, but she could hear their voices through the door. She almost jumped out of her skin when a wet tongue brushed her left ear. Before she had time to think, she pinned Stained to the Shelf with two clawed paws.

"Mommy, stop!" He breathed, lying flat on his back.

"You scared me," she said, exhaling with relief and let go of Stained.

"They'll take you, I think."

"I don't want them to! Please, do something," Panic was emanating from her. "I don't want to leave The Place."

"But Mommy, everyone wants to be taken. To have their own Place, their own Food, their own Sand. We dream of it," he brushed her neck with his nose, as if to mark his words.

When she seemed to be calmer, he lay next to her and nestled his head between her front paws. "My Big One was the best in the world," he closed his eyes and shifted a little to avoid falling.

"She loved me, she really did. I remember only her from my first days…" he continued in dreamy voice. "But she became ill. I sensed it and I often lay on her chest, to make her feel better and to show her my affection. She seemed better then."

He opened his eyes and lifted his head to look straight at her. "Other Big Ones came and only shook their heads. I think they couldn't do a thing to help her. But I…I never left her. Every day she seemed to be worse, like her life was running away from her. One day she did not wake and I couldn't leave. I was sad, alone, locked in her flat for two days. Finally someone came and brought me here, to The Place. I still love her, deep down somewhere, but I want somebody to take me from here. To live like those days, to be loved and needed."

* * *

She thought about what Stained had said and decided to give Big Ones a chance. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad after all. Maybe…

* * *

A/N: Many thanks to my beta, Cat Paws for her wonderful job and suggestions.

Thanks for reading and reviews!


	4. Six Degrees Of Isolation

**Six Degrees Of Isolation**

Big ones didn't returned that day and Shiny, who never let them forget his superior knowledge, explained that it was required for Big Ones to go through Adoption Procedures. If they didn't change their mind, they would come back in one or two days for her.

All of Carpet behaved as if her days were counted and her fate was sealed. She didn't feel as one of them anymore when they talked about new pillows or the incoming summer.

She focused her interest on the new inhabitant instead.

Scratchy arrived two days later and didn't make any attempts to come out from the corner where Big Ones put him. Shiny claimed that he was after an "Operation", whatever that word meant. It sent unpleasant shivers through her spine.

He never made any attempts to lick himself clean of the stench of the Isolated Room.

She came close to him and lay nearby, watching Scratchy through half opened lids.

"Move away from him, Mommy," hissed Three-Legged.

"_IT_ is near him, I can sense it," said someone from above her.

"He's suffering, I want to keep him company," she opted, but The Carpet just moved further away from her.

"IT will come after her too," someone hissed. "We don't want to be with those followed by IT"

"Better if Big Ones take him, her and IT from here"

"What is this _IT_?" she asked, but only angry murmurs answered her.

* * *

When dinner came, she had the smallest cup of half-eaten Food for herself, but she ate alone. Someone had moved The Food for her as far away as possible from the rest of The Food. The rest of Carpet ate in silence as she consumed her meager meal.

The Carpet made hissing noises every time she came near to them. Even now her Shelf was being occupied by some fat feline.

She spent the night alone on the bare floor, far from the comforting noises of the sleeping Carpet. Feeling emptiness and an ache to be near someone's warm fur, full of purring, she curled into a tighter ball.

She felt strange, unable to look at The Carpet from above, and thoughts of being taken by Big Ones to a new, different place weren't reassuring.

* * *

She woke up stiff and nervous. A pair of eyes was burning holes in her back, so she turned to see Stained at a "safe distance" from her.

"Good morning," she said, yawning. She stood and took a few steps towards him, but he retreated, keeping his distance.

"There is something going on outside the door," he whispered, making sure that no one else saw him talking to her. "They took Scratchy today, and The Carpet whispers that IT wouldn't go away, no matter what Big Ones try to do."

He looked to the left, than to right and continued. "I don't believe that IT is after you too, but you will be leave today or tomorrow and I will stay. I don't want to be an outcast like you."

"I thought about all of this a lot last night. I understand," she said reassuringly.

Stained nodded in response and after a few jumps he was laying in her usual place on the Shelf.

She wanted to use The Sand, but the only one available was full of morning mushrooms, so she curled near the door, near Scratchy's former place and waited, thinking of her near future.

Alone… No, she corrected herself, _lonely_.

Separated from The Carpet, soon to be isolated from The Place.

* * *

The door cracked open and the noise took away her musings. A Big One dressed in white scooped her in her arms and took her to the most dreaded room of all, the Isolated Room. The Big One with long, black fur was leaning over the still form of Scratchy.

They took him here to get rid of IT, but IT was faster. IT took away Scratchy and that was what Carpet feared.

She turned her head away from weeping Big One and let other Big Ones look in her eyes, ears, examine her fur and stick a needle with an itching something in her neck.

She forced herself to be calm when Big Ones reached for her and put her in a little cage. She was placed in a roaring thing and after the first wave of nausea stopped she started pacing; as if she could really pace in a thing that was not much larger than her.

After what seemed like an eternity the roaring thing stopped, and someone carried her to a house. She stretched her long limbs and stepped outside the cage, looking around and sniffling the air.

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A/N: I'm really surprised by a large number of hits on my fic. I never thought that a short story with Mrs. Norris would be so popular!

Thank you for reviews, they made my day :)

Cat Paws, you rock !


	5. Big Ones

**Big Ones**

Big Ones were following her every step from the very moment she entered into their house and their lives. They were making comments and strange noises when she tried to drink the water from a strange, porcelain tub. She shook her head violently. It tasted awful!

"Did you see, Mike?" Said a female Big One, tears of laugher flowing along her cheeks. "She drank from the toilet!"

Someone grabbed her and put her in The Sand, pushing her butt down. They were obviously trying to show something, pointing their fingers at the porcelain thing and The Sand.

She wasn't stupid! She knew what The Sand was for!

She examined the house, all two rooms, a small cellar, a kitchen and the bathroom again. She couldn't help but feel alien here. As much as she tried to spot it, there wasn't a speck of dirt anywhere.

* * *

However, she got used to this as well as to the little roaring thing that sucked up every single hair she left on the shaggy carpet.

There were many things on the shelves, making it hopeless to find a free space, until she decided to make one herself. The youngest Big One wasn't in his room (her room?) that the moment, but soon after she adjusted one shelf to her needs with a loud crash and shatter of things, he came rushing in.

He grabbed a fistful of her fur and shook her violently, yelling foreign words and underlining each with a shake. Next was a female Big One who taught her with a slipper that shelves were not for her.

She tried to sit on other shelves and a windowsill but with the same results. After awhile, she gave up.

Summer became Fall, Fall changed into frosty Winter and her life became a routine of _reminders_, occasional outbursts of the youngest Big One, dry food which looked like a brown grapes and constant boredom.

She wasn't allowed to stretch her limbs outside a of the hot, suffocating, sterile atmosphere of the house and her misunderstandings with Big Ones weren't helpful at all.

When curiosity passed, her actions and explorations of the environment she lived in were met with anger instead of observation and occasional comments.

* * *

The snowy landscape outside the window changed with agonizing slowness into livid green fields. Her only way to feel the change was to sniff the air through a thin space between the barely opened window and it's frame. Sometimes the youngest Big One dressed her into a body-binding leather thing and pulled her behind him around the house. Usually his other Big friends accompanied him and if they were satisfied with what they saw, she would receive a piece of Real Food from a plastic bag. However these moments were rare, and their frequency only lowered with the passing of time.

Spring blossomed with a sea of flowers and despite slippers and other discipliners she was spending a great deal of time with her tiny nose glued to the window glass. She couldn't help it, but felt growing anxiety and anticipation building inside her with every passing day. She licked herself with increasing frequency and a clump of hair in her stomach grew despite all the houseplant she tried to digest to get rid of it.

One morning she was certain that something is going to happen. Her roommate, the youngest Big One was pacing back and forth muttering something about the date under his breath.

It was strange because this word until now meant only that someone will leave The Place soon.

Then, the realization hit her. _She_ was the one to leave this place! Finally, at last, forever. Her eyes shone with joy and her tail dandled with anticipation.

She was waiting almost all day and it was late afternoon when the bell rang. She was already seated near the front door, because the odor of something the Big One sprayed in their room was unbearable. He made the distance to the door with surprising speed and she wrinkled her nose in disgust when he passed.

Outside the door was a female Big One, surrounded by a hideously sweet odor, probably the variation of the stench that was hanging in the air of her room. She was quickly dressed in a body, binding thing by them and soon outside. The difference between the thick, damp air inside and the fresh smell of flowers, grass and warm earth outside was overwhelming. It took her a while to adjust, but when she did, everything in her furry, little body danced with happiness.

The pair took a walk, dragging her behind them, but she didn't mind. When they stopped and took a seat on a wooden bench, she curled on the grass underneath and ate as much of the fresh, green stuff as she could with a loud purr.

Soon it started taking it's effect and she could feel a massive ball of hair swinging along with the grass and her dinner in her guts. She knew that the effect would be almost immediate, according to quantity of eaten plants and she closed her eyes, waiting for it.

A pair of hands scooped her up and she was placed on the female Big One's lap. The movement made her stomach twist and she gulped loudly. She felt a little dizzy at first, looking at a black and white polka dot skirt, as her owner stroked her fur. It was even pleasant until she felt long, cold fingers stroking from her chest to her throat. She gulped a few more times and the inevitable came.

She threw up, covering the whole polka dot skirt in vomit.

The male Big One grabbed her so harshly that her body binding dressing gave away and she dropped to the ground. He lifted his hand to strike, but this time, in the fresh air and free from her binding, she had the upper hand. She bared her teeth and with a loud hiss smacked the hand with her clawed paw, leaving four red marks on his palm.

With one, graceful movement she was more than five feet from him and headed towards nearby bushes.

Freed from the Big Ones once more, she quickly had to think of her next move before they came for her again.

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A/N: I'm sorry for lack of the updates, but I was terribly busy. However this story will be continued, I don't plan to abandon it :)

As always - big BIG thanks to my beta reader- Cat Paws! Without you - it would never be posted :)

Reviews appreciated. I like to know what you honestly think of my work.


	6. Close Encounters with IT

**Close encounters with IT**

She was followed for some time, but Big Ones don't have the ability to sneak through fences or to jump seven times their height up. Even with her pursuit far behind her, she kept running, all her instincts driving her away from the suffocating little house; as far away as possible.

She thought about freedom as was making her escape, but everything had its consequences.

Months of having food every time she felt the need to eat made her lazy, and spiders along with the other small insects may have given her a little fun, but couldn't make her belly full.

She needed to hunt to survive, but mice and birds were too keen, too fast. Eating scraps from trash bins wouldn't satisfy her needs fully and without additional hunting it made her bones quite pointy under the thick layers of fur.

* * *

She wasn't sure, what lured her to the little town she lived in, but she felt something in there, something like sparkles of electricity left by a storm.

Her days usually were concentrated on keeping her belly full, or at least as full as she could make it. Sometimes an old lady would give her The Food when she was relaxing on some warm stones heated by rays of the noon sun on a doorstep. The old Big One would greet her with unfamiliar words "A cute Norwegian Forest Cat", pat her head and give her something which would not only sustain her never ending hunger, but also her dreams.

She dreamed of The Carpet, murmuring their lullaby, of her little ones, sleeping peacefully with her on her Shelf, or of fields full of green grass and trees covered by blossoming little flowers.

Her luck wasn't long lived however. After a week passed, an Old Big One, not the same one, appeared at the doorstep. She never saw either of them again. Despite her bad experiences with Big Ones she tried to make others give her The Food, but their kicks and sparkling wooden stick made sure that she would never try again.

Warm sunlight shining through golden leaves soon changed into crispy, damp mornings and then before she knew it, everything was covered by white fluff.

Searching for food became harder and harder every day and being an outcast in a foreign place didn't help the matter. She had encountered other cats, but they would either flee before her or lash out making her feel unwelcome.

* * *

Finally, being tired, so tired of her loneliness she came to an abandoned building, hoping that the cats would finally got used to her presence and would accept her as one of them.

No such luck.

She snuck past two, large felines, sleeping peacefully near a small opening and was met by a group of males, who hissed at her and retreated deeper into the shelter.

"I want to hunt with you," she said, weariness emanating from every part of her poor, malnourished body.

She was met with such hostility this time that she retreated a little instead of advancing near them.

"Get away from us! Out of the town!" Hissed the biggest, a black male with orange, glowing eyes.

One of the fat felines blocked her path and bared her teeth. "IT is after you, and we don't want those with IT near us."

She retreated slowly, looking around to see the IT they mentioned. Suddenly she remembered.

The Carpet.

Scratchy's lifeless form lying not so far away from her in the Isolated Room.

Isolation.

IT.

She couldn't remember more, _wouldn't_. She sniffled herself, trying to recognize IT, but she smelled only of trash bins and mud.

The following days she searched for IT, trying to figure out if IT was after her, but failed.

Finally the realization hit her. She felt so dizzy and weak because IT was close indeed.

What if she fell asleep and IT caught her without a chance to fight?

She wouldn't sleep then.

* * *

She wandered aimlessly with an agonizingly slow pace. She walked unsteady, shaking violently with every harsh, cold blow of winter wind, leaving tiny, tiny holes in the fresh snow with her frozen, clawed paws. She passed the frozen lake, unable to catch any fish, under it's thick ice.

A large object, full of lights promised a shelter, maybe even The Food, but also Big Ones.

She was shivering uncontrollably from cold and fear by the time she reached a small, cellar window.

She barely had the strength to crawl inside, and when she did, she fell lower like a sack of potatoes. She fell on her left side, aching and weak, unable to move.

She could feel IT's presence now.

IT reached for her with its unmerciful black tentacles through her cold body, heavy eyelids and empty belly. They were trying to find their way through her dizzy little head, sore throat and whistling breaths.

* * *

A/N: Thanks for your wonderful reviews, they make me belive that this story is worth reading and writing :)

Cat Paws, you made great job, as always, correcting a sea of my mistakes. I really appreciate it.

PS. My second fic, about Severus Snape and OC is coming soon.


	7. Smell of Hope

**Smell of Hope**

She wasn't expecting to wake up. As a matter of fact she expected nothing in her numb state as exhausted sleep claimed her. But she woke up, slowly lifting her eyelids to find herself in the same cellar, covered by a warm piece of clothing and surrounded by the most wonderful smells ever: the smell of The Food.

There was a cup of The Food not far from where she lay. She crawled toward it and hungrily began to eat. She couldn't stomach much of it, but the taste, the smell of the Real Food was mouth-watering, delicious, overwhelming.

She felt a lot better, not sure if it was only The Food which made her better, or warmth, or something more. Nevertheless she was sure that IT had left her and it was almost unbelievable.

She looked up, trying to ignore a slight dizziness caused by the sudden movement of her head, but to her surprise, the small window she came in through was closed.

She wasn't trapped however. The door was opened a little, and she opened it wider, carefully poking her head outside. Cautiously, she stepped out of the door.

She explored wide hallways, careful to avoid Big Ones, the inhabitants of this place, and inhaled the sea of new smells. Damp walls, old dust, countless feet that passed by every day.

Through a different cellar window she got outside to fulfill her natural needs in the crispy, white snow instead of The Sand.

She was very careful to stay hidden, to not be seen by the Big Ones, the very sight of them making her skin crawl.

She even met another feline, but she was too afraid to show herself, and – so peculiar – this feline smelled more of Big Ones than was normal.

Strange feline it was then. She also acted differently somehow. She decided to avoid this feline as well.

* * *

The next day, after a night spent in some small closet, she directed her steps towards a certain cellar and to her surprise there was a cup full of The Food waiting for her. She ate quickly, as if afraid it wasn't for her and polished the cup clean with her rough tongue.

Before her escape she was used to at least three meals a day, but one cup now would do. At least until she regain her strength to try a hunt.

She explored the ground near the building and found a small hut. There was a Big One definitely, but his smell wasn't as frightening as others.

Anyway, experience had taught her a hard lesson. One that said in some part of contact them there would be kicks, or slippers, or pulling of fur.

Or exile.

She was sure that she wouldn't escape IT in her weak condition. She stared at the small hut, and then slowly, she retreated to the strange building with damp corridors and warmth and The Food.

* * *

After a week it became her new routine to come to the cellar every day and check for The Food. It was always there, a lone cup with a faint scent of one Big One.

One day she found not only The Food, but also a Big One.

He was holding a cup, her cup, with something tasty inside, and his hands, amongst many smells, smelled of food.

She was so hungry, and his hands smelled of food.

She was afraid to come closer. But his hands smelled of food.

She took a careful step towards him, because his hands smelled of food.

And another one, because it also smelled of hope.

* * *

A/N: When I received a message with this chapter and opened it, my jaw dropped to the ground. I thought that I improved my writing style, but I was mistaken. It was a mix of red and blue (my Beta shows me my mistakes this way). Without her I am sure that all of my readers would send me flames instead of reviews and I wouldn't be surprised.

Thanks Cats Paws!

I want to thank my faithful reviewer, Bottlebrush. Your comments are wonderful and I really love them!

And yellow 14 - You remind me of updates constantly ;)


	8. The Bond

**The Bond**

The New Big One turned out to be patient, at least towards her.

_Yet._

He wouldn't keep her on his lap against her will or throw things at her just because she found a cozy nook between many paper things. They smelled old and somehow safe. They smelled of this particular Big One.

_Yet._

The Big one haven't had IT behind him, but she _knew_ that her presence helped him somehow. That is why he gave her food.

_Yet._

It seemed a fair trade for her. She often knew that he wanted to tell her something and if he knew all the gestures, purring and meows, she was sure it would be possible for her to understand what.

It was all too good to be true and the _yets_ plagued her tiny head, making her wonder _when_.

_When_ would he decide that he had enough of her, that he wanted all of The Food for himself or start to keep her locked or throw things at her.

_When_ will be the time to encounter exile again along with IT?

* * *

The old Big One she was taken to smelled funny. More like little Big Ones who ate funny things. It wasn't The Food, they ate, it wasn't even edible.

He made strange gestures over her, using a wooden stick. She curled into a tight ball, expecting the stick to hit her hard, but it never happened. Instead, she felt a warm, tingling feeling inside.

The old Big One said something and made another gesture over her. Then she heard a voice.

"Would you like to be Mrs. Norris, being the lady as you are?"

She was feeling his anticipation as he waited for her reaction. She agreed, purring and he scooped her into his hands.

Her life would never be the same, she felt it that day and dared to hope for it to be true.

* * *

Many springs and winters passed from the day she was assigned to work with the Big One, her Big One as she called him.

The Food was ever present, along with her daily portion of petting and brushing. She became a real guard-cat for misbehavers inhabiting the huge castle.

* * *

One day Crookshanks arrived. His previous experiences with Big Ones were similar to hers.

During warm may they sat in late sun at grounds, catching little bugs together.

"Did they, um, you know- took your opportunity to reproduce?" He asked shyly.

"Yes, but I have no wish to be a mother again," she said distantly.

"But you can be _my_ Mommy?"

She thought about The Carpet. He would be surely a good part of it.

"But I won't share my Big One with you. Besides you have yours."

Of all times she was always Mommy. She could be still, even if for the orange, oversized boy of unknown specimen, twice her age.

* * *

She was not the young feline she used to be, but her hearing was sharp and so was her sense of smell.

The mouse was close. One jump away from her.

Two jumps. Even three.

She was alone now, except for bugs, but she didn't mind their constant presence if she was in a mood for hunting.

She stood up and sneaked into an old castle through a little, half opened window where The Food was always waiting for her.

Along with Big One, whose hands still smelled of it as he said _bon appetite_.

THE END

* * *

A/N: Thanks for staying with me through the whole story!

This chapter is not beta-read, so if you find any mistakes - I would be more than happy to know about it :)


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